We are happy to announce a talk by Johannes Mursell and Anke Himmelreich (GU) in the Syntax Colloquium.
The talk will take place in person. Room IG 4.301
Date: June 19, 2023
Time: 4 pm – 6 pm ct
Title: Imperfective marking in Sisaali and Gurene
Abstract:
In this talk we present patterns of imperfective marking in two Mabia languages: Gurene and Sisaali. In both languages, the morphology of the imperfective depends on its interaction with movement. The generalization is that the imperfective marker takes on a special form if material inside the VP (objects or adverbials) undergoes A-bar movement (wh-movement or focus movement) to the sentence-initial position. If there is no A-bar movement or if the subject undergoes A-bar movement, the default imperfective marker is chosen. Additionally, in the Tumulung dialect of Sisaali, the form depends on the linearly preceding element: A pronominal subject or a focus marker are followed by a special kind of imperfective marker, while non-pronominal subjects trigger the default marker. In...